Singapore's Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong, defended an exclusive deal between his city-state and Taylor Swift that prevented her from touring anywhere else in Southeast Asia. Swift performed six concerts in Singapore under the deal, which was criticized by some of the country's neighbors for depriving them of the tourist benefits that come with Swift's concerts.
Lee confirmed that Swift was provided with government incentives from a fund established to rebuild the tourism industry after COVID-19 disruptions, and he did not view the deal as unfriendly toward his neighbors. Lee suggested that if Singapore didn't agree to the exclusive deal, a neighboring country would have.
